Brazilian mining giant Vale S.A. (VALE) reported fourth-quarter net profit of $4.67 billion, down from $5.92 billion in the prior year. Earnings per share for the quarter declined to $0.90 from $1.12 previous year.
The net profit declines was due to lower prices caused by the European recession and negative expectations produced by the euro-zone debt crisis, the company stated.
Gross operating revenues for the quarter slid to $14.76 billion from $15.21 billion a year earlier. Net operating revenue for the quarter fell to $14.43 billion from $14.93 billion last year.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $1.00 per share on revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items
Operating income fell to $6.02 billion from $7.17 billion in the year-ago period.
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